South Africa vs Australia: AB de Villiers first to score 12 fifties in consecutive Tests

Updated: 21 February 2014 10:39 IST

South Africa wicket-keeper batsman AB de Villiers scored his tenth half-century against Australia and the 36th overall in his career as he reached 51 not out on Day 1 of the second Test at Port Elizabeth. Here are more highlights from the day's play.

Written by NDTVSports

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AB de Villiers scored his tenth half-century against Australia and the 36th overall in his career as he reached 51 not out on Day 1 of the second Test at Port Elizabeth. Here are more highlights from the day's play:

# De Villiers (7017 at an average of 52.36 in 91 Tests) is the fourth South African batsman to manage 7,000 runs in Tests.Â He has joined Jacques Kallis (13,289), Graeme Smith (9243) and Gary Kirsten (7289).

# De Villiers reached 7,000 runs in 151 innings - the joint second quickest by a South African batsman in Tests. Graeme Smith had achieved the feat in 148 innings, followed by Kallis (151), de Villiers (151) and Kirsten (167).

# De Villiers is the first batsman in Test annals to manage fifty-plus scores in twelve consecutive Tests, obliterating the feats of Vivian Richards, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag. All three had recorded fifty-plus in eleven consecutive Tests.

# Dean Elgar (83) posted his second score of fifty or more in Tests - his highest being 103 not out vs New Zealand at Port Elizabeth in January 2013.

# Elgar has managed 186 runs at an average of 186.00 at St.Gerge's Park, Port Elizabeth.

# Elgar had got a 'pair' (duck in each innings) on his Test debut vs Australia at Perth in November 2012.

# Hashim Amla has recorded his seventh duck in Tests - his second vs Australia.

# Graeme Smith is without a fifty in his last six Test innings. In the present series, he is averaging 7.66 - 23 runs in three innings.

# Smith is averaging just 34.74 in 20 Tests vs Australia - his tally being 1216 runs, including three hundreds and five fifties.

# Faf du Plessis (55) has registered his fourth score of fifty-plus in seven innings vs Australia. In his first three innings vs Australia, he had managed 78 and 110 not out at Adelaide in November 2012 followed by 78 not out at Perth.

# Overall, Du Plessis has recorded three hundreds and three fifties in Tests. After thirteen Tests, he has managed an average of fifty-plus - his tally being 858 in 19 innings at an average of 53.62.

# Du Plessis and Elgar put on 112 for the third wicket - South Africa's first century stand for this wicket-position at St.George's Park, Port Elizabeth, obliterating the 52 between Dudley Nourse and Eric Rowan in March 1950.

# South Africa's highest ever partnership for any wicket at St.George's Park is 157 for the first wicket between Barry Richards and Eddie Barlow in March 1970.